Gregor and the Halfbane DISCONTINUED
by The Nova Dragon
Summary: After Gregor had been living in Virginia for five years, he snaps and goes rager on a schoolkid. With Lizzie following, Gregor leaves for the Underland. He's also in a new prophecy, telling the death of a Halfbane's father- and maybe a girl on the quest
1. Black Widows and Ragers

**Yo. First fanfic, so I hope it's good. Please enjoy!**

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**One: Black Widows and Ragers  
**

Virginia.

It's not that it was bad... but it was, well, dull. Compared to my previous life underground, that is.

It had been almost five years since I last saw the Underland. Four years since I had seen _her_.

Just as Ripred had told me, being a rager did not fade out quite as easily when you had nothing to let it out on. Often times I had to sneak out at night and start attacking trees just to keep me from going completely mad. Everyone already thought I was.

I made a friend at school, a boy named something-or-other that started with a W. Or rather, I _had_ a friend at school. After he found out I wasn't going to come out of my little corner of fantasy, fingering a black claw on a necklace, he was gone.

Of course, there were always the bullies, who "pushed me around," and stuff. They were the main reason I went insane trying to suppress my rager side.

Lizzie had sort of moved on with her life, she made a few friends and kept well in touch with them, but her eyes always told me where her mind really was. At night, I could hear her say the name Ripred over and over. She truly missed that scar faced rat, and so did I.

Boots will never, ever be the same. She talked to bugs, animals, anything. Mainly cockroaches, though. And the scary thing is, they all understand her. I think someone had been giving her lessons in our last few weeks in the Underland. One of our neighbors called her the "seven year old witch".

But, she had more of a life than any of us did. she had at least seven best friends, and lots of others. She was so popular because she could get real close to the birds without them flying away. Naturally, everyone wanted lessons on how to be bird-friendly.

At the moment we were walking to school. We always took the same path for a while, but then we split, because my high school was a little ways farther than their school. Boots was chattering with something, I thought it was a dragonfly.

Then I notice she was humming, and took another look at what she was talking to. A spinner, a spider.

A black widow, to be exact.

I squeaked in protest, but the black and red spider stayed planted in the middle of her forehead. "Boots, is that a black widow?"

"Yeh," she said. "Spiders are the most fun to talk to." She resumed her humming, and then laughed.

"What?" I asked.

"He thinks it's funny that a rager, of all people, would be scared of little spinner because of venom. It's pretty funny, then you think about it."

"Yeah. Funny. Ha ha," I muttered. Stupid venomous spinners. Lucky

Lizzie didn't see.

When we got to their school, I said good bye, and told Boots to get the black widow off of her forehead before someone swatted it for her.

I walked to my high school, and made it to the doors just as the bell

rang. What happened in the morning wasn't important, so I'll skip straight to lunch.

I was about to walk into the lunch room, when I was yanked by my backpack into the lockers, and pinned face to one of the lockers by Keith, the well known bully.

"Hey, daydreamer, seems Peter over here forgot his lunch money. Got any to spare?" Keith asked, nodding his head over towards one of the two boys that flanked him.

"Yeah, but not for you," I retorted. I could feel the rager sensation boiling under my fingertips, twitching towards my pocket.

Of all the stupid days to remember to bring my stupid pocket knife...

"Wrong answer. Cough up _our_ money, daydreamer," Keith snarled. I couldn't help it, I laughed. I flat out laughed. It was hilarious watching a human, an _Overlander_, snarl when I had seen six foot tall rats snarling for real, on a real battlefield. "Are you laughing at me?"

I snorted. Anything to keep my mind off of the rager sensation entering my mind, I could already point out his weaknesses. His neck, exposed wrists, a point in between his ribs that was a perfect entering place for my knife...

"Fine, then, we'll just take the money," Keith was about to flip me over when I flipped out. I counteracted his move, twisting his arms and pinning them to his back and slamming his face into the floor. I hadn't even realize my pocket knife was out, until it was pressed against his neck.

"I've been on the field of battle, watching people die, and you're fighting for stupid coins," I laughed to myself. "Coins. Coins!"

"Lemmie g-" Kieth started.

I shove my knife closer to the back of his neck, shoving his cheek into the tile floor. "Coins are of no use when you have nothing to buy with them," I snapped. "I hope you face the same fate as the Bane," I had said, before I even knew it left my mouth. What did I just say? I couldn't exactly recall. Something about the war, and... the Bane.

Kieth whimpered. "Let me go, please. I- I'm mistreated. I have no mother, y'know? Oh man, get the knife off of my neck, please, please," Kieth was on the verge of tears now.

I got up, slowly backing away. What had I just done? Completely blown my cover as a rager, even if no one knew what on earth it meant? Heck yeah. I really hated myself sometimes.

This was it. I couldn't endanger my family any more. I started running, using every muscle in my legs to get as far way from the school as possible.

I had to get back to the Underland. I had a license, I had an after

school job, I could get some extra money, and either steal a car and get to New York that way, or just get a taxi?

What was I thinking? Why was I leaving my family like this?

Because I desperately needed to get back to the Underland, where I could be _useful_, where I meant something. Where I had friends. Where Luxa was.

Luxa...

That was it. I was going.


	2. Tagalong

**Yay, chapter two! I actually already have a few of them written out, so... yeah. I hope ya enjoy.**

~*~*~*~

**Two: Tagalong**

I had made it back to my house. I determined that I would need some provisions, if nothing else. Flashlights and batteries, for those who didn't have echolocation.

Then a thought occurred to me. Would I be staying in the Underland forever? I didn't have much of a life here in the Overland. I had come to think of the Underland as my home, even if it had been five years.

I brought my larger backpack, the one I used for schoolwork. I dumped everything on my bed, and stuffed in a few things. Shoes, light, my stuffed bat that Boots had given me, and a photo of our whole family together, on the couch. I made sure Ares' claw was safe around my neck, and also, the photo of Luxa and I...

Running down to the kitchen, I found a piece of paper and a pen. I started scribbling my farewell.

Mom, dad, Lizzie, Boots, whichever member of my family is reading this, it doesn't really matter. I have to leave, I can't stand it here any more.

I need the Underland.

I'm sorry to leave like this, but maybe I can visit you for Christmas? This would be so much easier if we still lived in New York, but I'm slightly glad that we aren't, because then you could come down here and bring me back up to the Overland.

The Underland is my true home, it always has been. I have no connections besides you guys up here, no identity. I'm known down in the Underland, and I have friends.

Mainly, I'm leaving because I can't control being a rager. It's too hard up here. I attacked a boy at school, and I couldn't stop myself. I'm sorry. Goodbye.

Gregor.

"Boots told me," Lizzie said from behind me. I almost pulled out my knife on her. "She said that the bugs saw you attack him, and then you ran."

I nodded. "You can't stop me, Liz. I'm going to the Underland."

"I know. I wanted to come with you," Lizzie said.

"What?"

"I want to come with you. Boots has to stay, though. She... she has a life up here. But I don't, and neither do you! We both know it. Please, let me come with you," Lizzie hugged me, burying her face in my chest as she pleaded. "I need to get back to the Underland, I can't stand the normality of this place any longer. I need the four foot high cockroaches, I need people with purple eyes and white hair, I need to soar on a bat again, I need to wear clothes woven by giant spiders. I need... I need Ripred..."

"O-okay," I said. "Pack up, but lightly. One other set of clothing, probably, we'll only need that for the trip to New York. Planes are out of the option, but I'm pretty sure that I can afford to rent a car or something for that long."

"Gregor, do we have an actual plan? How are we gonna get to New York?" Lizzie said from the door of her room, which meant she was packing. Good.

"Vaguely," I said, stuffing my drivers license in my pocket. "You still have all that money you saved for getting a laptop, right?"

Lizzie nodded. "Almost a hundred dollars, maybe more? I've been saving for over a year. But I never actually wanted a laptop. That was just a cover for not spending all my money."

"Huh," I said to myself as I scribbled out the word Lizzie in my note, and jotted down something at the bottom of the paper.

P.S. Lizzie's coming with, on her own free will.

"I know I have at least a hundred in my account. Two hundred should be more than plenty to rent a car for a day. We're gonna have to drive to new York."

"How long will that take?" Lizzie asked.

"Well, sadly we don't have enough to fly, or a bat from the Underland. Seven hours and forty minutes at best, I'm sorry to say."

"We should pack food, eat in the car. That way we wont have to stop," Lizzie pointed out.

"Okay, Maybe just a little more than seven."

"We can't leave now, then!" Lizzie protested. "We'd be entering New York in rush hour. If we want any hope of getting there fast, we gotta leave early. And by that, I mean early."

"Then what do you suggest? I can't very well go back to school, Liz. Neither can you, now that you've left. How'd you get here so fast? Wait, how'd you get here at all?"

"Now you ask. I left the same time you did, Boots got a cockroach to send me a message in the Tree of Transmission code. She told me what happened," Lizzie said. "I just said I had to go to the bathroom."

"Ah. So how are you going to justify being out of school?"

"I'll fake a cold. I've done it before," Lizzie said, crossing her arms.

"Wait, you've done that before? When-"

"And as for what I suggest..." Lizzie cut me off short. "I think we should stay today. One more day, one last time with our family. Then in the morning we break for it. When's your shift at your job?"

"I start ten minutes before school. I'm allowed to be cut loose from math a little early to make it."

Lizzie nodded. "Okay. We'll prepare, get the backpacks ready for travel and hide then under our beds, or something. Tomorrow we break for it at seven in the morning. Do you know where we can rent a car? Just some cheap old car, it's a one time use. Never mind, I'll just call around,

find a place.

"You make four sandwiches. That'll be two each, and we can have

them in the car at some point. And get water, too. Just make me PB and J, or something," Lizzie dashed off to the phone, and rifled through the phone book for car rentals.

I couldn't believe I was bringing Lizzie along with me. But she really wanted to go, and I knew it just as much as she did. Now I was starting to have second thoughts as I raided the fridge for sandwich ingredients.

What about Boots? Sure, she would want to visit, but Lizzie and I were planning as if we were going to live down there! Boots could always visit with mom and dad, though. She knew that, right?

Mom and dad. Oh, man, they might be devastated. But I would be turning seventeen soon, and then the next year I would have gone off to college anyway. Heck, I had no plan for a future over here. But down there, what could I do? No doubt I could find someplace to work in the castle, I was still good with a sword. Maybe I could be a trainer? Lizzie would make a great teacher, it was what she always wanted to do, but she could be teaching it to Underlanders.

I had just finished the sandwiches when Lizzie skipped over to me. "I found a place, only about ten blocks down from here. Sixty dollars, we can rent a car and drop it off at another location in New York for an extra twenty five. I'd suggest making it in one day, because otherwise we'd haev to pay another fifty dollars. I checked."

"Great. Hey, Liz, I just realized, what about mom and dad? They wouldn't want us to leave."

"We had to leave at some point, Gregor, you know that. They left their parents houses, too. We'll just be leaving a little early. They'll know exactly where we are, and they can visit us."

"Alright," I zipped the sandwiches up in a plastic bag and shoved them in my backpack, along with two large bottles of water. What time was it? Almost two. It had been an hour and a half since I ran from Kieth. In another hour I'd be back at my part time job. I worked at a bookstore for two hours after school. After that, I'd have to face the rest of my family with the realization that Liz and I were leaving them... probably for good.

Was it worth it? Just to see the Underland again? Just to see my friends. Ripred, Mareth, Hazard, Howard, Luxa...

Luxa.

Yes, it was definitely worth it.

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**Okay, this is the second chapter that ends with "Luxa." And I apologize. *snicker* Gregor: It's not my fault if I love her- wait... Me: Yeah, it is. Gregor: You suck. Me: I know. :3**


	3. Goodnights and Goodbyes

**Ho-hum. not much to say here, except that I'll be leaving on Sunday for the beach (huzzah!) and I'm pretty dang sure I'm not allowed to bring my laptop. So, just a warning, in case I don't get to update later on this week. Sorry that this chap is so short.  
**

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**Three: Goodnights and Goodbyes**

I left the bookstore. Why did I choose to work at a bookstore, you ask? Because it has a timeless sense about it. It seemed just about as close I could get to the Underland. It's just... yeah. I walked down to Boots' school, and waited for her outside.

"Heya, Boots. I heard the bugs told you about my little fight."

"Yeh. You're not in trouble, are you?" Boots asked. "'Cause that would seriously suck."

"No," I lied. "I got to the principle's office, and got Kieth in trouble. Big time. But don't tell mom and dad, okay? They'd freak."

Boots grinned, and skipped all the way home, humming along with some brown and tan spider that looked like a piece of Aztec pottery.

When we got home, Lizzie and I put on a fake grin, telling mom and dad about what never happened for us at school. Boots went all out to explain her new elaborate project, to create a miniature pulley system (with parents' help), from a special kit. But she insisted that she did it all by herself. Dad hovered over her as she started sketching out designs, what could hold it down, how it would balance, and other stuff I didn't understand. Boots was gonna be an architect, no doubt about it.

I slipped back to my room, shoving anything I forgot into my hardly-filled backpack. It was almost sad with how little I needed to pack when I was running away from home. Duct tape, my copies of the prophecies that Nerissa gave me, and a single extra set of clothes. Strange, how you can forget clothes when your set on running away.

Liz opened the door to my room so silently that I almost pulled my knife on her again when tapped my shoulder. How did she do that? "Yeah, Liz?"

"Do you think we'll get caught for more than a day driving? I don't know if we have enough money for a hotel," Lizzie said nervously. She played with a ring around her thumb, it was a little plastic band that fit inside a large one that you could twist around, making a very faint tk-tk-tk noise. It was supposed to help her prevent panic attacks, and she played with it often, but it worked pretty well when she remembered it.

"If worst comes to worst, we can just camp out inside the car or... something," I said quietly. I really hoped that Boots' insect friends weren't listening to me right now.

Lizzie nodded. "So, I'll put a couple of small blankets in my pack, 'cause you've got the food. Right."

She walked away, silently. Lizzie was always so silent, I wondered how she walked so lightly that no one heard her. I wondered if Ripred could. I would ask him about that. It felt so nice to be able to think about that again. To think about seeing them all again, it was great.

~*~*~*~

The rest of the day went by uneventfully, but Boots made a point of showing her work-in-progress of her model. She had the base and part of the mast finished, but she showed us the sketch to show us what it looked like. Nothing like it was supposed to on the kit.

After the kitchen was cleaned and a long game of Lizzie-version-monopoly was played, we all said good night. Under my breath, when no one could hear, I whispered: Goodbye.

I lay in bed for a long time, staring at my window. I looked out on Virginia, how alien it seemed. I could still remember my old room in the Underland, it had a window too. It overlooked the city of Regalia, torches burning on the stone buildings, farmers in their fields, traders, homes, everything.

I fell asleep eventually, thinking about Regalia. In my dreams they shifted from Regalia to the people that lived there, and to their ruler. Luxa.

I missed her, so much.

The next thing I knew, someone was shaking my shoulder. Opening my eyes, I found that it was still dark out. I closed my eyes again...

"Gregor, mom's leaving early. I had to wake you up earlier, I'm sorry," Liz apologized.

"Fine, fine," I said. "Shoo. Lemmie get dressed, and grab something for breakfast, okay? I completely forgot about that."

"Yeah. Chips?" She whispered. I started to nod, but I just set her off. "We can't have bacon, or eggs, that wouldn't really work in the car, I could get trail mix or something, maybe-"

"Just go get something, Liz, and be quiet," I muttered. Lizzie nodded and quietly dashed into the kitchen. I looked at my goodbye note again, and then got dressed. I came down to the kitchen and got the tape, and stuck it on the front door, where everyone would see it.

Before I knew it, we were out the door and walking all the way down to Moe's car rental.

~*~*~*~

**Not much of a cliffhanger, I know, but trust me: I like cliffhangers. So there oughta be a lot more in the future.**

**Oh, and that spinner that looked like a piece of Aztec pottery? It's real. I found one on my window a long time ago. They're black with tan markings on their back. Real pretty.  
**


	4. New York

**Squeezing in one more update before I go to the beach! Okay, many thanks to authorEmilyRay for my first critique, and pointing out a flaw that I had completely bypassed. So, I hope that this chapter is a little more emotional, cause what I can planned before was SEVERELY different. And it is still uncertain, but I'm pretty sure I wont have my laptop on the trip. So, I'm leaving tomorrow (Sunday) And shall be coming back on Thursday.**

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Four: New York

If it hadn't hit us before, it did now.

We passed a sign on the road, welcoming us to New York. My stomach twisted in a knot, the true reality of what Lizzie and I had done sinking through me.

The guilt of leaving my family behind, letting my mom worry over us while we were in what she thought to be a living hell, it wasn't that nice to think about.

I bit my lip, and tried to concentrate on the road, tried to keep my emotions in tact to keep Lizzie from worrying too much. I didn't like having second thoughts, least of all give them to Lizzie once we had already passed the borders to New York City.

I let out a sigh, and glanced at Lizzie. She was silent, like she had been before. But she looked slightly different. She probably felt the same way I did.

Liz had her knees to her chest, and her hands in her lap, fingering her ring, making the familiar tk-tk-tk sound that came when she was stressed. She had every right to be.

"Hey, Liz-"

"We left them," Lizzie said blankly. She twisted the ring on her thumb, tk-ing away.

"Yeah. We... we did," I really felt bad now. Why did I have to bring Lizzie into this? Why couldn't I have been the older brother that I was supposed to be, and just said no??

Apparently, I was just as much a normal older brother as I wasn't a rager. Great.

"I don't regret it," Liz muttered. Talking to herself now.

Tk-tk-tk.

"I do not regret going to the Underland," she whispered.

Tk-tk-tk.

"I'm glad we left," Lizzie was barely audiable now.

Tk... tk... tk...

"I don't regret leaving m- mom..."

Tk...

"Who am I kidding?" Lizzie leaned back against her chair.

"Liz, are you okay?"

"Yes. Mostly. Sort of. Slightly," the band on Lizzie's thumb had resumed it's tk-tk-tk noise.

Liz's breathing sped up, but not too dangerously. "No."

"Listen, if you really think this is a bad idea, I can turn around. We can go back," I said. Part of me wanted to. Part of me yearned to turn the stupid car around and speed back towards home, back to my parents and Boots.

But only part.

Most of me wanted to see Luxa. At least, most of me thought it did.

The desire was fading as I watched Lizzie tear herself apart over leaving her parents behind.

"No, don't turn around," Lizzie looked at me, pleading. I could see tears brimming her eyes, and could hear her now rapid breaths, which only wrenched my own gut more. "I'm sorry. Its just, leaving mom and dad. It freaked me out for a while. Sorry."

She sat back in her seat, silent, except for the occasional stream of tears down her cheeks which were wiped away quickly, followed by the tk-ing of her ring. Every time I glanced at her, I could see her mouth things, from what I could tell, she was listing off math problems.

I wished I could take my mind off of things as quickly as she could.

Maybe I could do something to take my mind of the almost unbearable guilt bearing down on my shoulders.

I kept my eyes on the road, completely immersed in every detail I got to keep my mind from slipping back to my parents.

When I let my thoughts have free roam, I was glad to find I could forget about my parents for a while, my mind wandering to one person. A queen, to be precise. Questions rushed through my head, too. Lots of them. And to top it all off, I was starting to question myself about just how much of a good decision this was, not only for my life in the Underland, but Lizzie's as well.

Would Luxa accept Lizzie and I back? Would Vikus? They all knew five years ago that I might not have been able to come back to the Underland. They knew that they might have never seen me again. But I was coming back, and I desperately hoped that they would let us stay.

~*~*~*~

Only about an hour away from Central Park, Lizzie said that since we had been in the car all day, we should break for lunch to stretch our legs. I was grateful to see that she was mostly back to normal, a little blank, and keeping her finger on her ring at all times.

But I was glad for the stop. To be honest, driving didn't really do it for me. Thankfully, I wouldn't have to deal with stupid machinery like this in the Underland.

We stopped at one of those roadside tables they sometimes have near cities. I was almost half finished with my sandwich, when Liz spoke up.

"Do you think they've read the letter yet?" Lizzie muttered, watching her sandwich carefully, but not eating it. "We left before dad did, and he probably called mom."

"Yes," I said. Mom was probably sitting at the kitchen table, crying, just like before. Just like when dad left.

Though neither of us said it, we both knew it. It hadn't completely sunk in that mom would sit at the table, staring at the tablecloth until now. I hoped she would stay aware of the world, the rest of our family should still get to be happy, and Boots too, but she couldn't be if mom wasn't.

Liz dropped her sandwich, and stared at it for a moment. I saw tears well up in her eyes, and then she cried. Really cried, not just tears accompanying a panic attack.

I hadn't seen Lizzie cry that many times. Two times significan't came to mind, but other than that I was blank. Once, when she figured out that dad wasn't coming back, and twice, when she thought Ripred had died. I scooted next to her and wrapped my arms around my sister.

Hearing her cry made me want to curl up in a ball and be forgotten. But I couldn't do that, I had to take care of Lizzie, and I had to keep my cool even though I was just as upset she was about leaving our parents behind.

"Hey, Liz, it's okay," One thing I knew about my sister was that she didn't like to be comforted. She was always concerned with other people, never herself. You had to reassure her that other people would be okay. "Dad will understand, he'll make sure mom is okay. He'll take care of mom, and Boots. They'll be fine."

Lizzie's sobbing stopped, and I unwrapped my arms from her. "Sorry, Gregor..."

"It's alright. But you shouldn't dwell on it. Okay? Think about seeing everybody. I'll bet that Ripred would be glad to see you again."

Lizzie brightened a little at that. I knew she would. Ripred was probably one of her best friends in the Underland. And Ripred actually tolerated her more than he did most people. He wasn't even rude to her.

Well, I thought. It'll be nice to have something to look forward too.

Besides Luxa, of course.

~*~*~*~

Finally, after another hour of driving, we had made it to our destination. We dropped off our car at the rental place and hiked over to Central Park.

Then I realized that we shouldn't be heading towards the park. I grabbed Lizzie's arm, and changed my direction. I didn't tug hard, but still got a protest from my younger sister.

"Ow! Gregor, what are you doing? The gates are over there!" Lizzie pointed with her free hand.

"And the waterway is also over there!" I mockingly imitated Lizzie's frantic pointing. "We both know we can't fight water currents like that. We're going to the laundry room in our old apartment. And I remember how to get to Regalia from there."

"I... oh," Liz said, realizing my point. "Can you let go of my arm?"

I obliged. We walked towards our old apartment complex, and entered. Nobody recognized us and stopped us for a "Visiting the ol' NYC again, eh?" conversation. I shuddered at the thought. Well, who did I know that would have that conversation with me anyway?

Mrs. Cormanci would. But then again, I wouldn't have minded a conversation like that with Mrs. Cormanci...

No. We were going to the Underland, no distractions. We had just seen her last Christmas, Mrs. Cormanci insisted that she at least had to come out every year to exchange gifts. And she did.

I sighed. I didn't think we could stand any more goodbyes. Lizzie might break down again.

We walked straight over to the laundry room. The grate wasn't bolted down anymore, open to the world.

But more importantly, it was open to Liz and I.

Then something struck me. How the heck were we supposed to get down the opening? Sure, we could get through, but then we would fall. I was so used to a bat being there to carry me down.

Apparently, the thought had tapped on Lizzie's skull too. "Gregor, how do we get down?"

"There are currents," I reminded her. Well, I hoped there were. Sometimes they were very weak, or even nonexistent entirely. But they had kept Boots and I from falling the first time, why shouldn't they this time? "We can float down on them."

"Are- are you sure?" Liz shivered.

I peered into the grate, and clicked several times. I got red flashes of images back, and I saw faint swirls that the sound had almost passed through. I grinned. "I can see- or, hear, the currents. We'll be safe."

Liz nodded. I stepped into the grate. It was kind of a squeeze, but I made it, and I was being careful to stay on the thin ledge that I could barely stand on. Liz came in next to me, and I pulled her close, my arms around her waist. "You ready?"

"No," Liz stated.

"Neither am I," I muttered. I took a step forward, letting myself fall into the blackness with Lizzie at my side, and waited for the currents to slow me down. But they didn't. In fact, I was dropping like a rock. No, this couldn't be right. I had seen the currents. I clicked again, and got a slightly fuzzy red image back. But there weren't any currents.

They had all disappeared.

I held on tighter to Lizzie, and I rolled over so I was beneath her. She should at least have a chance of survival. Why did I have to drag her into this? Again, I felt nothing like the older brother I probably should have been to her.

Something knotted in my stomach, and the thought of dying struck me. Mom, dad, and Boots wouldn't even be able to visit us, now.

Liz looked completely panicked. From her rasping breaths I saw through my echolocation, the ground. Approaching fast.

I didn't even have time for a last thought, when I blacked out.

I had hit the ground.

~*~*~*~

**How's THAT for a cliffhanger? I am such a sucker for the things. If the Mrs. Cormanci thing seemed a bit OOC, then sorry. In the original write of this, they went in from Central park, and my brother pointed out that it was over the waterway. OOPS. So I finally rewrote it. And Mrs. Comanci popped up into my mind, 'cause sh would probably still live there, so I stuck that in as a lame excuse for them avoiding her. Bee-bye.**


	5. Red Eyed Man

**Hey, guess what! I'm back a day early! See, I was supposed to be updating at, say, 11:30pm _tomorrow_ night. But we rushed through the beach and all that stuff really fast, plus my dad got strep throat. Not fun. So we packed up a day early, so here I am, updating.**

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**Five: Red Eyed Man**

The next thing I knew was pain. This wasn't like the very first time I fell, being sore like I had simply fallen out of my bed. That would have only been a simple two feet off the ground.

No, this had felt just like I had been dropped from a four story building, and had gotten all of my bones crushed. Heck, I felt like I had been sandwiched between the ground and a rock. And Lizzie didn't even weight that much.

I twitched my eyes open to see a face above me, running. He looked like a man, at least twenty five years old.

He stumbled, and I felt a jarring pain. The man was carrying me. I wanted to say, Who are you? And I wanted to question why I was still alive, but all that came out was "Ngh..."

The man looked at me, surprised, and I saw his eyes. They weren't the usual purple color of the Underlanders, they looked a lot more bright, with more red than looked natural.

We rounded a corner, and I got an unpleasant reminder of the pain all over again, but mostly in my back. Then I got a reminder that I couldn't see Lizzie.

"Liz!" I tried to scream. I did so, successfully, too. But I also wound up taking a big gulp of air after that, shoving my lungs against my ribs. I gasped, and let out a strangled scream.

"Shut up!" The man carrying me said. His voice was a little higher than I would have guessed. "Don't talk. Ripred has the other one, the girl. We're taking you back to the castle."

The man stumbled again, and a sharp pain shot up my spine. That was when I blacked out again.

~*~*~*~

I woke up, and there was someone hovering over me, doing something on my shoulders. Well, I thought so. My back was mostly numb.

Then I recognized who was above me. "H- Howard?" I muttered. He looked different. For one, he had a beard. Not a long one, but a beard none the less.

"You're awake," Howard said, startled. He looked surprised.

"Yeah," I said. "I guess I am."

"Ripred brought you here. He'd said said that you had fallen from the entrance in your apartment. Lizzie had fallen on top of you, so her damage is nowhere near the extent of yours," Howard looked concerned. "From what I can tell, your upper spine got quite the jolt, although, surprisingly, nothing was broken. Minor fractures at best. Something also happened to your leg, but that had been fixed almost instantly. Basically, not including the fractures, your entire back got, well..." Howard trailed off.

"Squished?" I finished his sentence. It was interesting to describe

your back as "squished."

"Somewhat. The muscle did, and that could take a while to reform. I must say, you are lucky that Ripred found you," Howard went back to doing whatever it was on my shoulders. "You owe him your life."

"I don't think it will be the first time," I said.

"Well, I've mostly gotten you patched up, but you must take it easy for a whi-" Howard got cut off.

"Where's the other guy?" I asked. I wanted meet the red eyed man. Someone who could run as fast as Ripred had to be pretty dang strong to do so while carrying me.

"Pardon?" Howard asked. "Oh, hold on a moment, I apologize for interrupting, but have you the ability to move your shoulders?"

I wiggled my shoulders, and winced. Ow. "Yeah. But, I'm talking about the guy with red eyes. He carried me here."

"There was only Ripred there. Lizzie had been on his back, and he was carrying you," Howard raised his eyebrows. "Everyone saw it. There was nobody else. And nobody here I know of has red eyes."

I let my shoulders droop. That couldn't be right. The man with red eyes had specifically told me to shut up. I doubt I could imagine somebody doing that. And I didn't think Ripred would say something like that in danger. Something more like, "Be quite, or you'll break you ribs," yeah. That sounded like him.

"Oh, I... I must have just been dreaming," I muttered. At least I could breath now. But it still hurt.

Howard nodded. "Luxa had wished to see you, Gregor. I'll shall go get her. And I'm glad your back. We all missed you."

Howard left, and I was alone. I closed my eyes, and got dull flashes of red through my mind as I listened to the sound of my breathing bounce off the walls.

At least, I thought I was alone. I got a very pronounced flash of red, and heard a scuff, like bare feet on cement. My eyes flew open.

And there he was. The red eyed man. I got a good look at him. His skin was pure white, like his chin-length hair, but it was solid. No blue veins visible under the skin, no almost translucent parts of skin showing the darkness around his eyes. Just plain white.

I heard the door creak, and I turned towards it.

Nothing.

Turning back, I found that the red eyed man was nowhere to be found. Maybe I was just imagining things.

I heard the door creak again, but this time I ignored it. But then I heard footsteps. And someone was breathing on my neck.

"Gregor," Luxa breathed.

~*~*~*~

**Dang. I'm running out of good cliffhangers. YES! ENTER MY ONLY OC! The Red Eyed Man. Bwahahaha.  
**

**Anyway, I'm leaving again on Saturday, and before you complain, I WILL HAVE MY LAPTOP THIS TIME! Huzzah! Yep. And I'll be back on... next Tuesday? Bee bye.**


	6. Howard Doesn't Like

**... Gluxa. (That was the continuation of the title. I'm so genius, aren't I?) I'M BACK! And I feel so bad! I know I said I would haev my laptop- (And I did, for the record,) but I couldn't get an internet for the past three days, it wouldn't even let me get a connection HERE. Augh. but the thing is, it's just a fancy word processor with slow internet. Yeah. So, I hope you enjoy. Sorry if Luxa or Howard seen a little OOC, but people change after five years.**

~*~*~*~

**Six: Howard Doesn't Like...**

"Luxa?" I rolled back to my back, and grimaced a moment. But then grinned, seeing her face. Luxa's hair was almost as I had remembered it, short, as if she was going on a quest like five years ago, but it looked much nicer and kept. Not just chopped off. Her dark purple eyes looked like jewels. "Is it really you?"

"I am questioning myself whether or not this is another one of my dreams. But I have never dreamed quite so vividly," Luxa said softly. She ran her fingers through my hair, brushing it away from my eyes. "I have never been able to touch you in my dreams."

"You're not dreaming," I said. "I can feel my shoulders. They hurt."

"Why did you jump?"

"I thought I saw the currents with my echolocation. I was... wrong. Is Lizzie okay?"

"Well enough to walk freely among us. With that fall, she shall be sore for several days," Luxa answered, continuing to comb my hair with her fingers. "But I should be worried about yourself. Howard said that you very nearly broke your back. There must have been at least some current to break your fall."

"I suppose so," I muttered. Luxa was staring at me. I was staring at her. Our eyes were locked in a deep conversation, so deep we didn't fully understand it. Luxa leaned forward slightly.

"Ah!" I exclaimed, feeling a jarring pain in my back. She got of of me immediately.

When Luxa had leaned forward, she had put some of her weight on my chest, and, well, you know.

"I- I apologize," Luxa spluttered. "I had completely forgotten about your back..."

"No, I'm- it's okay," I grimaced, biting back on my tongue. "Dang it. Howard didn't happen to mention when I could walk without crippling myself, did he?"

"I am afraid not the exact date," Luxa said. "But if you limit your movement, in a day or so. I hope."

"Well, I hope so too," I muttered.

Luxa and I had talked for almost an hour, if I remembered correctly. Turns out, being the queen over a city who had only recently made peace with rats, especially when some people still hated them right down to the core of their bones, was hard. She had been through trial after trial with people and rats alike, claiming "She did this!" and "He did that!"

"Ripred has been complaining about it, for now that we've bonded, he must listen to matters that include rats. I've been thinking of leting him loose on all of them," Luxa joked. "If only to calm my nerves."

"Sure," I played along. "But only if you let me have a go at it too."

Luxa laughed. So did I. It was great hearing her voice again.

But then I stopped. I remembered the creatures I had killed. In the war with the Bane, how many of the rats had simply been mislead by Twirltongue? How many possible friends could I have killed?

"Gregor? What troubles your mind?" Luxa asked, concerned.

"Just... getting flashbacks of the war. All the death..." I trailed off.

It was silent for a while, but then Luxa broke the silence. "I can take your mind off it, if you wish."

"How?" I asked. I doubted anyone could take my mind off of things like that, when my thoughts didn't want to stop.

"Like this," Luxa kissed me. And can I tell you something?

It. Was. Great.

But of course, it had been ruined.

"Cousin, what are you doing?" Howard asked. When Luxa moved, I could see that he wasn't annoyed, or mad, but he looked kinda confused.

"Visiting Gregor, as I had informed you earlier," Luxa said sharply. She turned towards him for a moment to glare, and then turned her back towards him.

"Visiting his mouth is more like," I thought I heard him mutter. Luxa didn't make any acknowledgement that Howard had said anything. "Luxa, I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave my patient."

Luxa sighed, and looked up, her dark purple eyes watching me. "I shall speak with you later, Gregor."

"Bye, Luxa," I said, and she walked off.

"I have said it before, five years ago, and I do not wish to say it again. So I will not," Howard muttered as he looked at different bottles.

To be honest, I didn't know what he had said five years ago. "I, um, don't remember..." Great. I felt like an idiot.

Howard leaned over me, so he looked at me upside down. He kept a straight face. "I do not wish to be rude, and I hope it does not seem as if I am intruding, but I must speak up and say that it would be a big deal for you to court my cousin. I am just advising you that it would not be wise. And I must say, I do not think you would wish to be king of Regalia."

He turned away abruptly, but continued speaking. "Do not take what I said wrong, you have every right to be friends with her, or myself, but I would advise you to just stay that way. Now hold still."

"What-" I started.

"It's a sedative. You need as much rest as you can get, but I'm to assume that you are too... hm, shall we say hyper, to go to sleep?"

I was about to protest, but he was right. My mind wouldn't stop reeling about the recent events that had happened to me. About Luxa. I just nodded.

"Yes, I thought so," Howard chuckled. He handed me a tiny glass of what looked like clear liquid. I drank it, and he took the empty glass back.

Howard left with a wave, and within five minutes, I felt drowsy. I lay on my side, and let my eyes droop.

Sleep felt nice.

~*~*~*~

**So... y'all like? I did have a cliffy before, but then I realized that it would never happen in the story... and it was stupid. Your greatest and worst ideas always come at midnight, y'know? (Yes, I write this at night. Quietest time in my house.)**


	7. The Prophecy

**Augh! I didn't update in a long time! Well if you didn't know, I'm home schooled. And I just started a biology class with my friends, taught by her mom. So that's been a little strange for me, actually doing homework. Who cares if I don't know about the guy who invented the abiogenesis theory in the 1600's or whenever?! *headdesk* Enjoy. Sorry for the rant.**

~*~*~*~

**Seven: The Prophecy  
**

When I woke up again, I found that I wasn't in the hospital. I was in the room that I used to call my own, a small one (small in comparison to the others in the palace, that is) with a window that overlooked Regalia. I was content.

I found that I could sit up, if I did so slowly. So I did. I didn't risk standing for a while, but then I had gotten bored. Heck, why not...

Yes, I could stand! I was pleased with myself, though my back did still have a throbbing pain. But that didn't go away, not if I was standing, sitting, or even lying down.

Silently thanking Howard, I walked towards the small cabinet that would generally hold clothes. Momentarily, I was garbed in what would be Underland pajamas.

After I changed, I glanced towards my window, a square hole in the wall with a curtain over it. I shoved the black curtain to the side, and looked out over the familiarity of the city, everything else forgotten.

Leaning out a little, I watched the people bustle around Regalia, everything returned to it's former beauty from the previous war. I turned my head to look farther, beyond the walls, where the farmers were.

And I saw a figure on the rooftops.

I stumbled a bit, cursing at myself for jumping down without double checking the currents, and looked back up.

The figure was staring at me.

He had red eyes. He looked startled, scared even. But what was more scary, was that he turned and ran. What if he fell? "Wait!" I protested.

The man stopped for a moment, and stared at me. This time in disbelief. He turned back around, and jumped...

Jumped off of the roof.

And I didn't see a bat go under him. I couldn't see properly all the way to the bottom, so I could have killed him. I bit my lip.

Stop thinking about it, I thought to myself. It's your imagination. You hit your head when you fell.

I leaned over a bit more, and felt a twinge in my back. I planted myself back in my room, and closed the curtain.

Someone knocked on my door.

It startled me, but I got over it and walked, more like limped, over and opened it. It was Mareth.

"Greetings, Gregor. I have missed your presence at the training field," Mareth held out his hand.

I clasped it. "I missed you too, Mareth."

"The feeling is returned, Gregor. It is a pleasure to see you again," Mareth smiled, and let go of my hand.

"Do you know how long I've been down here? Howard knocked me out, or something," I scratched my neck.

"You have stayed in our company for four days, come tomorrow. I was supposed to deliver this to you, compliments of Nerissa," Mareth held out a scroll. "I shall speak with you later, Gregor. Good day," he walked away, leaving me with a scroll.

In Nerissa's elegant handwriting, it read:

The Prophecy of the Halfbane

Running to our land of black

Once-warrior, he shall soon be back

The war with the Halfbane may soon end

Codebreaker, makes the Halfbane mend

Find a man and pass him by

Then come back later for a surprise

The Halfbane's father is rising in power

He strikes at the time of the Harvest Hour

Search uncharted lands, didn't you hear?

Go and travel to the land of bones so feared

Though friend of rat, when she does come,

Whom is not glad is only one

Find a man and pass him by

Then come back later for a surprise

The Halfbane's father doesn't lie

He'll kill any creature of the sky

Not one or two, but three claws strike

That is when he ends her life

Rejected rat, dirtied with mud

Knows silver fire brings back her blood

Find a man and pass him by

Then come back later for a surprise

The Halfbane's father just might run away

Tell him an offer that makes him stay

Find Halfbane's father, do this quest

Or Regalia's walls shall never rest

Stop him else the town wont mend

And the Underland just might soon end

Find a man and pass him by

Then come back later for a surprise

The Halfbane's father is bound by perfection

Fight him and drive him to his own objection

No.

No, no, no!

There couldn't be another prophecy! I had completed them all, the warrior was dead, I wasn't the city's savior anymore! I didn't need to go and save Regalia again!

And yet the information was being drilled into my brain as I ranted. A new prophecy, a new enemy.

A new war.

I stumbled backwards, hitting the floor. A pain jolted through my

spine, and I groaned. I leaned my head back, resting it on the mattress of my new bed.

This couldn't be happening.

Well, apparently, it was. I was looking straight at the parchment in my hands, written by Nerissa, copied directly from a stone etching carved by Bartholomew of Sandwich, who had seen with his own eyes what would unfold before me today.

Sighing, I tried to calm myself down. Get control, and don't freak out. I wasn't Lizzie.

I had to accept that this was a prophecy, my prophecy.

But what if they were just a bunch of junk, like Ripred had said? He had inflicted a second scar upon himself, just to satisfy the people that he was the Peacemaker, to stop the war.

But Ripred never believed the prophecies.

Of course, the real question was, did I? That was what I needed to know. I truly didn't understand, everything had come true that Sandwich had said would. He even one time addressed me directly, saying that he gave me his sword!

Everything was to confusing right now. I didn't know where I stood in the matter of believing in prophecies or not, so I had to do something.

I reread it, tried to make sense of it, and it just made my head hurt. I had to come at it with the point of view from someone who did believe in this stuff. Then maybe my had would stop hurting as much.

Okay, Sandwich described me as once-warrior, which was better. But there was still a war.

The Codebreaker was obviously Lizzie. There was going to be a war with this Halfbane, and probably the Halfbane's father, or whoever. Lizzie was supposed to make the Halfbane mend. Strange.

Uncharted lands. That wasn't going to be fun. The feared Land of Bones. I hadn't heard of that before. Couldn't be good.

He shall strike at the time of the harvest hour. Wait, what was the Harvest hour? When was that? I hoped it wasn't soon. I would ask Vikus.

Rejected rat, now dirtied with mud, was that Ripred? What was "dirtied with mud" supposed to mean? Oh, I had skipped a line. Maybe it would tell me what this one meant.

That is when he ends her life... someone was going to die. Her life. Was it Lizzie? Or even... Luxa...

I shook my head to rid myself of the horrid thought. Luxa couldn't die, wouldn't die, and never shall die. These prophecies were just a bunch of nothing, right?

Maybe not.

Well, then it was just a strange conception of Sandwich's words, just like When the warrior dies. All that did was stop me from being the official warrior. But it looked like I'd be needed again, because I was supposed to kill this Halfbane's father. Great. Piece of cake. Who the heck was the Halfbane's father? Or even the Halfbane?

It was all so confusing. I sat down on my bed. Most prophecies usually were.

Sighing, I rolled up the paper scroll and put it on the table beside me. I saw my backpack sitting there, too. Then I realized something was missing. I grabbed at my neck, but it wasn't there.

I flew for my backpack, not caring if my own back hurt like heck. I unzipped it, and found it sitting on top of everything. Ares's claw, threaded with a nearly unbreakable chain. I never truly did let go of the claw, and sometimes it felt like he was still with me. Ares, my bond, whom I had saved from banishment after he saved my life.

I save you as I save my life...

But I didn't save Ares. I watched the Bane kill him. I clutched the claw, and felt the hot tears run down my cheeks. I had seen the Bane dig his teeth into his neck, ripping open the flesh of my best friend, my bond.

He saved my life, so many times over, and I repayed him by letting him die by the hands of a giant, hypnotized rat.

But I had killed it. I had killed the Bane.

That had to count as something, right? I hoped so. I left my head fall into my hands. Why couldn't I have somehow saved Ares? Every time I replayed it in my head, I saw where I could have jumped out and killed the Bane before my friend died. I knew I shouldn't dwell on it, but I couldn't stop. I just couldn't.

I looked up, and put the necklace around my neck. I always felt like he was there with me, watching me, from wherever he was now. A part of him, a small part, was still with me.

Still with me.

~*~*~*~

**Yeah, i put in a little drama with the whole Ares dying thing. Just pretend that when he said in the fifth book, that Ares' claw should be buried with the rest of him, just pretend it never happened. I would have imagined that he'd keep it. So there you go. Was the prophecy okay? I changed it SO MANY times!**


	8. Insert a Hazard Here

**Aaagh! How long has it been since I updated? Too long, probably. (So sorry!!) Ah, be prepared for some randomness from Hazard and yelling from Luxa (and the council,) that wont get explained until... roughly ten chapters later? That sounds right.**

**~*~*~*~**

**Chapter Eight: Insert a Hazard Here**

I got up and walked out of my room, slower than normal, but walking nonetheless. Augh, my back hurt. But I ignored it. I had to see Vikus, I had to ask him for help to figure out what the heck I was supposed to do on the quest.

But I didn't know where Vikus was. Would Luxa? Maybe not. But it could never hurt to check with her first.

So, I changed course. Luxa's room. She would know where Vikus was, I told myself.

The doors to Luxa's room were not larger than most, but the black marble was delicately carved with designs, I wondered what kind of tools they would use to do details in a space that small.

I knocked on the door, and Hazard opened it. He blinked.

Hazard was twelve now, the same age I was when I first entered the Underland. His black hair was not as curly as it used to be, but it had the same wavy texture to it. He was much taller, up to my chest. He held a book tucked under his arm.

I don't know what I expected to hear from him. Maybe he would have been angry, with me not visiting and all. Or he would be surprised I'd returned from the Overland, or even survived the fall.

But I can tell you one thing, and it was that I was not expecting:

"Gregor! You've returned from the dead!" Followed by a hug, and a whisper. "You're not a zombie, are you?"

"Dude, where'd you even hear about zombies?" I attempted at prying Hazard from my torso without harming myself (he was kinda crushing my back), but to no avail.

"You don't look like a zombie," Hazard said. He let go of me, and then grabbed my arm. "You're arm would definitely be lacking in rotting flesh, were you actually a zombie. You've been cleared."

I stepped inside, and he closed the door behind me. "Hazard, I repeat, where did you hear about zombies?"

"If you've already forgotten, I lived in the Overland for a little while too. Back to the subject, I'd found a whole book on them in the museum. I've found a lot of books in there. Zombies are my favorite," Hazard explained. "I also found a story that's quite weird. It's about this girl who's half human, half fish. Strange things goes on in the Overland, I tell you."

"You're telling me?" I asked. "Oh, just... never mind. Do you know where Vikus is?" Forget seeing Luxa. I should just go and interpret the prophecy.

"Vikus is most likely in the council room. They've been discussing your return for some time now."

"Thanks," I said, and started to leave.

"Watch out for zombies!"

I really hoped he knew that stuff was fake.

~*~*~*~

I walked down to the council room. Well, slowly walked. Stupid fall, stupid echolocation, stupid me. Hopefully it would heal in a day or two, but that seemed unlikely.

Sighing, I walked up to the opening in the wall. But I didn't enter. I heard voices.

"...Really should consider it, for I believe the it is one of the more likely of possibilities that can happen," I heard Luxa say firmly. She was using her ruling tone, even without seeing her, I could hear the pure authority in her voice.

"That shall never happen, because you are not to allow it. Nerissa found a new prophecy, hidden in the corner behind our collections of Overlander belongings. You will stay behind, and you will not get close to the Warrior. Our kingdom almost fell because you did before, it shall not happen again," another voice spoke, that of an old woman. One of the council?

"You have no control over me," Luxa growled.

"Apparently, we have some. The prophecy predicts the death of a female member on the quest- there is a strong possibility that the mentioned person is you," a different voice. A man.

"Now, now, she's a grown up queen. Can't she make her own life or death choices in life? Very helpful along the road, I should know," Ripred? He was there?

"Ripred, you do not understand," a kind voice, an old man. Vikus! "You must take into consideration that Luxa has no heirs. Forgive me, Nerissa, I should never mean to offend you, but I believe that it would not be the best choice to elect you as our queen again. And I am afraid that I am much too old to take the place of ruler once more."

"There has been no offense taken, Vikus. I do not wish to be queen again, I must admit," Nerissa said.

"I will not die, you should know! Sandwich is toying with our minds. I am to leave on this quest when the time arises, and I shall be at Gregors' side. No council can stop me!" Luxa yelled.

Silence. I couldn't take it any more, I walked in. I tried to pretend I didn't hear anything. So, the council believes Luxa to die too.

Just don't think about it, I told myself.

Nerissa was the first to see me. I locked eyes with her. She looked almost exactly as she had before, hardly grown two inches. But she did look slightly older. Her hair was in a tangled mess down to her waist, and her clothes probably could have been kept in better care.

"Gregor, you walk again!" Nerissa said cheerfully.

"Ah, Gregor. I suppose I should be glad to see you up and about. Honestly, I had suspected that Howard would have to feed you to the fish, the shape you were in," Ripred smirked at me.

"Yeah, well hello to you too, Ripred," I smirked back at him.

"Warrior, we must inform you of the new-" One of the council members started.

"The new prophecy? Nerissa already gave me a copy," I shrugged. "I'd go now, but..."

"We all know, Overlander," Ripred said. "You don't need to pity yourself for us."

"Actually, I was going to say that I... uh," I trailed off. Dang! I didn't have a snappy comeback.

"Hm. Exactly," Ripred smirked again in triumph. I hated his stupid little smirks. And that's probably why he did it around me.

"Back to matters, we shall not bring any fliers on the journey. He'll kill any creature of the sky, clearly states that bringing bats could mean total collapse of this quest," wow. One track mind there, buddy.

"But then how will we get through the Uncharted lands? It would be a much quicker search with them by our side," Luxa said.

"Are you idiots purposefully trying to make me laugh? I've been to the Uncharted lands many times. I could spot any place a Bane had been a mile away," Ripred said. "I'm beginning to think that I'm being taken for granted over here."

"Lets hope it's true," one of the council members glared at Ripred.

Ripred glared right back. Only... about a trillion times scarier.

I swear to you, if he wasn't in front of his queen, trying to look good, he probably would have fainted right on the spot. You could see it in his face, or more like, all over his face.

Some of the time, Ripred was totally awesome.

~*~*~*~

**Hazaaaaard!!! I just LOVE that kid. This is always how I picture him in my head, a cute little boy with a taste for sticking his nose into things... and who plays war against the invading zombies. I hope I get the next chapter up sooner, I'm having a tad bit of trouble working out a transition from one major part to the next near the end, and I don't want to be posting chapters right and left and then all of the sudden I hvae nothing beause I'm stuck. That would be bad. Ta!**


	9. Waiting To Heal

**Have I ever mentioned that I planned on making this two books? I honestly hope. Oh hey! I got out of my writers block! In this chapter you get Gluxa... yay! But in later chapters you're gonna get some bad tension between them. And maybe even VERY big arguments. Buahaha. Give you something to gnaw on. Enjoy!**

~*~*~*~

**Nine: Waiting To Heal**

A week. A whole freaking week since I had woken up in my Underland room, and I still couldn't run any longer than fifteen seconds without wearing myself out. Howard says that if I exercise a little each day, that I could be on the quest in roughly five days. He also says that I should be insanely lucky, that most people don't heal hardly even half this fast from falling from the Overland, most people don't even make it alive.

Howard said that it had something to do with me being a rager, that whatever speeds up my blood in a fight is forcing my body to heal faster.

I remembered about a year ago, I donated blood. Well, I tried to. The doctors said that it was contaminated with bacterial eating organisms. The doctor started freaking out, and said that he had to take me to the hospital immediately. I wanted to protest that nothing was wrong with me, but my dad spoke up for me instead. He said that he would take me to the hospital himself, and let the doctor continue with the donations.

No, my dad never did take me to the hospital. Just to his school workroom where his stuff was.

Having a scientist for a dad is pretty awesome. It turns out, it was a bacteria eating... thing. But whatever it ate it stored away, and turns it into energy. In my case, energy for turning into a rager. If I don't let that energy out once in a while, it builds up. So now, that energy was being used to heal me.

Dad took some of his own blood, and compared it to mine. Turns out, he has a few of the same organisms in his own blood, but a lot less of them. And they were dormant, not doing anything. Examination of my mom's blood turned out to be the same thing. Did that mean that anybody could become a rager once the bacteria were active? It seemed so.

It was just one more thing that separated me from the human race. The whole of it, Overlanders and Underlanders alike.

I got plenty of time with Luxa, which were my definite highs of the day anytime. Even if she did have to have guards near her at all times. Lizzie was spending some time with Nerissa, and another girl whose name I've already forgotten.

As long as I'm keeping up with my good mood, I can tell you that at that point I could walk quickly without limping or _anything_. Running will come next, and I'll be a full fledged warrior, ready for another quest to save the Underland.

Of course, I had to wait. Howard said that. Luxa said it. Lizzie, too. "Wait and let yourself heal," they all said.

But truthfully, what was I waiting on? Myself. I was waiting for my own stupid body to heal, when Lizzie's already has. Not that I'm unhappy she didn't get hurt. I just wish that maybe, somebody was there to cushion my own fall. Then I could have been running by now, maybe?

Oh, forget it, I told myself. I was just ranting about my back to shove another matter out of my mind. I was going on a quest. Everything was set, we all knew what to pack, where we were headed, everything. Now everybody was waiting on me to heal.

Waiting, because we were running out of time.

_He strikes at the time of the Harvest Hour_, I was told what that meant. Vikus said that every five weeks, there was a Harvest Hour, where everyone gathered with their harvested plants and goods, either to stock in the castle, or to trade with others, or to simply try and sell it. Though it goes on all day, most just stay for an hour. It would be an excellent time to attack, everybody so defenseless selling food.

That would be when the Halfbane's father will try and murder the people of Regalia. In three weeks.

It was another thing that was bothering me. The whole thing was called "The Prophecy of the Halfbane," yet there was only one reference to the Halfbane itself, everything else was "The Halfbane's father."

The Halfbane's father is rising in power... Find the Halfbane's father... The Halfbane's father does not lie... this, that, blah blah blah.

Luxa pointed out that "The Prophecy of the Halfbane's Father" wasn't quite as intimidating as just Halfbane. I had to admit, the ring to it just wasn't the same.

Anyway, I'm getting a bit carried away. Later that night, I got a surprise visit from Luxa.

Without her guards.

"Luxa?" I asked.

"Hush, Gregor!" Luxa glanced out of the doorway before coming in and closing the door. Then she started whispering. "My apologies for snapping at you, I only wished to have time with you by myself without our speech being constricted and having others listening to our words."

I nodded, and whispered back. "How much time do you think we have before someone realizes you're gone?"

"Not long, Gregor. But I wished to talk to you about being... here," Luxa sat down on my bed with me.

"What about it?" I asked.

"Are you staying... forever?" Luxa glanced up at me, eyes locked with mine.

"That was my initial plan," I said softly. "Do you _want_ me to stay forever?"

"Forever and beyond, Gregor. My only fear is that the council, and half of Regalia, will dislike us. _Together_, I mean," Luxa looked down again.

"Howard already doesn't. He warned me back in the hospital, said that a commoner like me could never get close to someone like, well, you."

"Commoner? He used that word? How _dare_ he!" Luxa's vision snapped back to me. "Do not let my cousins' words take hold, you are so much more than a commoner to me! To everyone! You used to be the warrior! You slayed the Bane, and when you didn't trust anyone, no bat, nor even myself, you jumped to your death and defeated King Gorger's

army. Even though you knew you were going to die."

"Hey, you're right, I used to be the warrior," I cupped Luxa's face in my hand, running my thumb down her cheek. "But I _am_ also a commoner in the Overland. My family was poor, and still doesn't have much. But none of that matters, you know why?"

Luxa just stared at me.

"Because I'm here with you, and nothing in the Underland could be more important to me than this. Nothing in the whole _world_," Luxa smiled at that. So did I.

"I feel the same, Gregor. I just wish the council could see our way," Luxa leaned on me, so I was holding her. "They've forbidden me to go on the quest, for fear of my dying. And they've forbidden me to get close to you. That's been the reason for the guards."

I pretended I hadn't heard it all in the council room. "I don't think you'll die," total lie. Lie, lie, _lie_. I was scared out of my wits that she was going to die. I hugged Luxa affectionately. "I won't let it happen. Never."

"I can take care of myself, _Overlander_," Luxa joked. She poked me, and grinned. "But I would be glad to know that you would be there at my side, protecting me."

"You can count on me," I whispered.

It was silent for a while, Luxa lying in my arms. We didn't speak, we simply enjoyed the silence that we shared together, just being close.

And for that short time, everything was perfect.

~*~*~*~

**First time I've ever written gooey romance stuff like that. Normally it's only drawings, but this time I WROTE it down! Gaspeth! If you cannot tell, I am feeling bleah and stuff. And I've gotten past my writers' block. Or did I already mention that? Bye. **


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